All Forum Posts by: Erin Schenk

awesome. I will plan on coming

cool. where is it at? what time?

thanks. yes, getting that connection would be great

Looking into setting up a self directed IRA account to be about to do some real estate investing. Wondered if anyone know of any good companies to go with (or any to avoid).

thanks for your help

just seeing this. I live in ventura and looking to connect with people in the area. could you keep me in the loop the next time you host an event? thanks.

I live in venture California. Prices were already pretty ugh and will likely be overinflated for a while due to the big fire we had in December. I have been pondering if investing out of state makes more sense. What are people’s thoughts on doing that as a new investor? 

What are good areas to do that in?

I’m hesitant to buy something far away. And might feel better buying somewhere near family or friends which put Phoenix Arizona and Evansville Indiana on my radar of places to try to learn about. 

thanks for the information everyone. Its nice to know that I am on the right track in how I was figuring numbers, and how I was reading what the local market is like right now. 

Albert, how exactly did you come up with the lower number where tax benefit was deducted. I have been running numbers on what the mortgage, taxes, and insurance would be and then comparing that with the amount of cash I would have in my accounts after that vs what I would have if I was renting at different level. then was accounting for debt paydown/ equity or tax benefits as a different number. probably not the typical way to try to figure it out but given that its not the best market for buying or rent, it is was seemed to make sense for my current situtation.

I dont know that this is the best time to invest in Ventura or that it is the best market. however I think starting is better than doing nothing. and it would probably be best to do my 1st deal locally rather than out of area. 

Santa Paula might be an option since I work there. because I work at 2 schools, and have worked at 4 all on the same side of town I am pretty picky about what part of town I would even consider. 

not sure if more rent apartments of houses; it seems to be a mix. I have lived here 3 years and always rented a house. house-hacking would be interesting; there are way more SFRs than duplexes in the neighborhoods I have looked in. If I could get a loan based on the properties rental income instead of my income then that would be a possibility. 

I can qualify for a loan from the bank to purchase something in the 200,000 to 250,000 range. A mortgage broker I talked with thought he might be able to get me a bit higher. 

Yes, I have looked at getting roommates and that is what would make it work to own a home. however I cant use that expected income to help get a higher loan from a bank. I heard that if I could show rent payments from a tenant for 1-2 years then I might be able to use that boarder income to help get a larger loan. 

I would buy something based on the deal and the cash flow. Using seller financing would probably be the way to go. A lease-option would be something interesting to me but no one does that around here. 

Buy a Condo vs Rent vs wait longer to be able to buy a SFR

I live in Ventura, CA and am interested in getting into real estate investing.

I will be moving out of my current rental in a couple of months and am trying to figure out the best plan on housing situation- whether it makes more sense to rent or to buy.

Condos have been something that I have wanted to stay aware from since there is an HOA that could change and would be a cost every month even after the property is paid off. However with a teaching salary I am not able to qualify for a traditional loan amount large enough to buy a single family home.

Here are some of the numbers:

renting a room would cost $650-800/month

1 bedroom rentals are around $1300 for anything decent; Ive been seeing a range of $1100-$1800 depending on the location and property

lowest 2 bedroom rentals in the parts of town I would be interested in are around $1500 although most are higher than that

condos can be found for around $250,000 for some 2 bedrooms; there are some 3 bedroom ones in the mid 300s

HOAs tend to be around $200-$350 per month

I havent seen any houses under $400,000.

many 3 bedroom homes in the area I would be interested in are going around $530,000

I have enough for a 5% down payment on a condo. I could potentially put more down depending on the deal and if I had someone rent the other bedroom.

I’ve been crunching the numbers on what the rent/buy comparison would be for how it effects my bank accounts over the course of a year. just starting to work on numbers for what the debt pay down would be over 1 and over 5 years.

It would be great to get some feedback on what seems to make investment sense. and on whether it would be better to keep saving cash toward a down payment on a SFR or to buy something at a lower price point sooner.